READERS' BEST PHOTOS

25 Serene Winter Water Scenes

Frozen rivers for skating, waterfalls that cascade down as solid icicles, morning mists rising off lakes as the sun rises. Such magical scenes define winter, and these 25 photos capture them perfectly.

"An unexpected blizzard turned my June vacation to Yellowstone into a January scene! Despite the weird weather, the bison continued to enjoy the new green grass peeking out beneath the snow along the shore of this beautiful lake."

"As the story goes, when the Pail and Shovel Party took over student government at the University of Wisconsin, they promised to have the Statue of Liberty relocated to campus, but when they were airlifting it in, the cables broke and the statue sunk into Lake Mendota."

"This picture depicts Fanette Island which is the only island on Lake Tahoe and is located in Emerald Bay. My wife and I were taking an excursion on the M.S. Dixie II paddleboat in February when this amazing view was captured. Fortunately for us, Lake Tahoe does not freeze over in the winter because of its amazing 1000 ft average depth."

"The 2011 Cottage Cup in Burr Ridge, Ontario, Canada. Every year my buddy and his 4 brothers invite all their friends up to the family lake for an annual hockey tournament. This year was cold, -14, but probably the best year yet."

"This photo was taken from the grounds of Fort McHenry in Baltimore, MD. I am looking south I believe, into the harbor. The low sun, scattered clouds, and leafless trees provided some great shots that day."